Change of Plans - A Copper Stopwatch One-Shot
by MusingsFromMars
Summary: ((Nothing Bad Ever Happened AU)) Ruby, Penny, and Ciel are out on a date in Vale when a storm rolls in, so they hurry to a hotel to wait out the storm. Well, it turns out the storm is going to last all night, so they rent a room. But, here's the thing, you'll never guess...there's three of them, but ONLY ONE BED! And Ciel's only outfit is soaked! Whatever shall they do!


**Change of Plans**

Ciel had known Ruby Rose for about three months now. The first thing she remembered noticing about her was, well, how close to Penny she seemed. She had found it odd. Penny had never mentioned having friends in Vale, or even knowing anyone in Vale for that matter. However, after spending a bit more time around Ruby, and hearing Penny's stories about her, Ciel decided Ruby must've been a wonderful girl.

She couldn't have been more correct.

Ruby had to be the kindest soul Ciel had ever encountered. Day after day, Ruby never failed to be an uplifting ray of sunshine. She was always happy to see her and Penny, always keen on showering them with compliments and affection, and always did her very best to be there for them.

Not to mention, her Semblance almost guaranteed that they would never be late for anything. That certainly came in handy today.

"Hurry Ruby! The arcade tends to get really busy around this time!" "We need to make our reservation before they give away our table!" "I want a chocolate but the convenience store down the street closes in thirty seconds! RUN!"

Ruby, never one to give up on her girlfriends, got them everywhere in time, but her legs were paying for it. "Uhhh, my calves hurt..."

The three sat on a bench in the park, Penny on the left flashing her eyes at the night's first firefly, Ruby on the right trying to massage her leg muscles, and Ciel in the middle, happily eating her chocolate bar. "I'm sorry we made you run so much," Ciel apologized as she bit off another chunk of chocolate.

"Don't be sorry. I'd run until my boots melted for you girls," Ruby assured her, but judging by how she had her legs sprawled in front of herself, she had very little energy left.

Ciel leaned over and gifted Ruby with a light kiss on the temple. "Thank you, Ruby. Today was so fun." Ruby hummed pleasantly in response.

"I agree," Penny added as she watched the firefly buzz elsewhere. "I especially enjoyed the arcade."

"You got so many high scores!" Ruby praised her.

"The algorithms were simple to follow." Penny grinned.

"Dinner wasn't too boring for you, was it?" Ciel asked.

"Not at all," Penny shook her head. "It's actually amusing to watch you two eat. You both get so happy about food."

"I do like food." Ruby nodded.

Ciel had learned that Penny was a robot not long after she started dating her and Ruby. It was a bit of a shock at first, but the fact that Penny was made of circuits and wires didn't change the fact that she was a beautiful person with an enormous heart (figuratively). Ciel had never seen Penny happier than when she promised her she still cared about her and loved her all the same. That day, the three of them became so much closer.

And now, Ciel felt like she wanted to commemorate that closeness. The trip to the arcade, the dinner date, the trip to the park, it was all a plan leading up to this moment. After so many wonderful moments together, she was ready to finally say it.

Ciel loved Ruby and Penny.

Ciel wasn't for making moves, though. At least, if she wanted to make any sort of new romantic advance toward Penny or Ruby, she had to build up a lot of courage first. When their day began, Ciel felt confident that she would have plenty of time to build that courage for this moment in the park, but to her frustration, but not to her surprise, she was really, really nervous. She wanted to say it so badly, yet she worried too much about fumbling her words or doing anything that might ruin a potentially perfect moment. She wanted it to happen exactly how she imagined it in her head, but way too many things could go awry...

Ciel realized, though, that this was the deadline she set. Perfection or not, Ciel had to say it. She didn't spend all this time planning their day and daydreaming about these two beautiful, kind, wonderful girls to _not _tell them she loves them. A quick glance down at her watch told her it was almost one hour until midnight. This was when she wanted it to happen.

And so, she stood to her feet, and opened her mouth to speak...

"Uh oh," Penny cut her off before Ciel could begin.

"What uh oh?" Ruby asked.

Penny had her hands to her chest, staring into the distance. "My barometric sensors are informing me that a low pressure atmospheric system is rapidly moving into the area."

"Wuzzat mean?" Ruby asked.

"It means it's going to rain soon," Penny said.

_Rain? _That was not part of Ciel's plan. It couldn't _rain _on the night she confesses her love for Penny and Ruby. Rain was a bad omen of sorts, Ciel was somewhat certain.

But she still had two minutes before her watch reached eleven. If she told them quickly, she would still—

"Ahh!" Penny exclaimed. "I felt a drop!"

"Me too," Ruby added.

"Oh...man..." Ciel murmured in frustration.

Penny stood to her feet, shuffling in place in agitation. "I can't be outside in rain. It might damage something."

"You're not waterproof?" Ruby asked.

"I need to put on a protective cover to be waterproof," Penny responded.

"Like...like a protective case for a Scroll?" Ciel asked.

"Yes!" Penny exclaimed, hopping up and down. "Ruby, I know you're tired, but can you please get us to the nearest building ASAP? This is a severe storm and I don't want to get damaged."

"I'll carry you, Penny." Ruby nodded, stepping over to her and lifting her into her arms bridal style. She looked toward Ciel. "Hop up here, hurry."

Ciel shook her head. "You'll get her to safety faster if you're not carrying me. I'll follow you."

"But you'll get soaked," Ruby pleaded.

Ciel stepped toward her and kissed her cheek. "I'll be fine. Just get Penny to safety." She turned and placed a hand on the back of Penny's head and kissed her forehead. "I'll follow you."

Ruby smiled and nodded. "You're amazing, Ciel."

"Go go!" Ciel smiled and waved her on.

Ruby grinned, and the very next second, Ruby and Penny were gone in a flash of rose petals. Ciel then began to run, following the trail of petals, as the rain began to pour harder and harder. Penny was right. This was a severe storm, and Ciel knew she wasn't going to catch up to wherever Ruby and Penny had gone with even an inch of dry left on her.

This was _just great_. Not only was she going to be soaked from head to toe, Ciel missed her deadline. She missed her perfect chance to confess her love for Ruby and Penny. Now the best she could hope for was to hopefully avoid any mud puddles as she dashed out of the park and across the street.

By the time she stopped beneath an awning, rain was pouring down like a waterfall. Water was running down the streets, and thunder began to rumble overhead. Ciel took her beret off and rung it out like a washcloth, a stream of water getting squeezed out of her favorite hat. Ciel sighed and trotted into the nearest building, her shoes and socks squishing under her feet with every step.

There stood Ruby and Penny who, besides a few drops here and there, were dry. At least Penny was safe.

Penny gasped when she saw Ciel enter. "Ciel, you're soaked."

Ruby stepped up to her and hugged her gently. "Poor Sunshine, I totally could've carried you."

Ciel hugged her back and chuckled. "Ruby, your legs are trembling."

"Your...everything is trembling," Ruby countered.

Ciel hadn't yet noticed how much she was shivering from the wet and cold, but now that she did, she wanted to get these soaked garments off and wrap herself in a blanket of some sort. "Where are we?" Ciel stammered.

"The Vale Park Historic Inn," Penny answered. "One of the oldest lodging establishments in Vale."

"A hotel?" Ciel asked.

"Yeah," Ruby chuckled. "Which is kinda convenient."

"How so?" Ciel asked.

Ruby sighed. "Penny said that her sensors are telling her that this storm isn't going to let up anytime soon, so..." She shrugged. "Wanna stay the night here?"

Ciel inhaled and exhaled shakily as she looked around the small room, the next room over being the lobby. "I mean..." She coughed. "I don't know if I can pay—"

"I can pay," Penny offered. "I have access to my father's banking account. I can use it in emergencies like this."

"That's so nice of you," Ruby smiled.

"Can we hurry?" Ciel asked.

Ruby took Ciel's hand and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Of course, come on."

The three of them then walked through the next door into an unexpectedly small yet beautiful lobby. The floors were a dark red carpet, with the walls adorned with tan and brown wallpaper. Ahead along the left wall was a large wooden front desk, with a staircase to the right. The inn probably had no more than five or six guest rooms total.

A young man with a dark trimmed beard and bellhop hat sat at the front desk...or, rather lied hunched over the front desk, asleep. Penny giggled as they approached. "Pardon me, sir," she greeted kindly.

The man sat bolt upright, startling the three girls. "Ehh!" He adjusted his hat and looked at Penny. "Oh, uh...forgive me for...sleeping on the job."

"You're forgiven. It _is_ quite late," she waved her hand, smiling.

"How is she so effortlessly sweet to literally everyone?" Ciel whispered to Ruby, staring at Penny's smiling face.

Ruby smiled. "She's just...that way, I guess."

Luckily for them, there was one vacant room in the inn. Penny paid for the night, and the manager handed her a brass key. Penny then waved for Ruby and Ciel to follow her. "Upstairs," she declared.

They followed her up the staircase, with Ruby having a particularly difficult time getting up to the second floor. A turn to the left on the top floor led them to room 21. "Isn't this exciting?" Penny asked.

"Yeah," Ruby chuckled, trying to hide a grimace because of her legs. "The three of us with a hotel room all to ourselves. We could have a pillow fight!"

Ciel shuddered from the cold. "Maybe a warm shower for me?"

"Of course," Ruby squeezed her shoulders.

Penny unlocked the door, and the three girls entered. It was a simple room. Directly to their left was the bathroom, and ahead was a desk, a TV on a stand, and a one large bed flanked by two nightstands and lamps...

Just...one bed?

"Oh," Ruby froze when she realized.

"Are we...are we going to..." Ciel tried to speak, but her shivering was beginning to get too much.

"Ciel..." Penny pouted as she came over to her. "Come on, we need to get you warmed up."

"I..." she inhaled in an attempt to calm her shivering, but she only made it worse. "I can just...get in the shower."

"Wait, Ciel," Penny held her hand. "You don't have a dry set of clothes to change into."

Ciel gritted her teeth. She hadn't thought of that. "I'll...just put these back on...after I get warmed up."

"You can't just wear wet clothes," Ruby said, shoulders drooping.

"Then what do I wear?" Ciel asked, squeezing her own shoulders as she trembled.

Ruby and Penny glanced at each other, with Penny shrugging. Ruby turned to Ciel and kissed her nose. "Hurry and get warmed up. Me and Penny will think of something."

Ciel nodded. "Thank you." She then stepped into the bathroom and shut the door.

Ruby looked over at Penny. They look at each other for a couple of seconds, then Ruby stumbled and flopped onto the bed. "Legs hurty..."

"Poor Ruby," Penny cooed, giggling at how Ruby had fallen face-first onto the mattress.

"Poor Ciel," Ruby responded after turning her head to the side. She rolled onto her back, legs hanging off the edge. "What do we do, Penny?

Penny held her hands behind her back, looking down. "I don't know."

Ruby heard the shower in the bathroom turn on. At least Ciel was getting to warm up. "I'd totally run to a store to get her a shirt and some shorts, but..." She groaned at slightly moving her leg. "My legs have turned to peanut butter."

"And I can't go outside," Penny murmured. "She's going to feel so embarrassed..."

"After all she did for us today..." Ruby sighed, staring at the ceiling.

"Maybe this hotel has laundry facilities," Penny pondered.

"It would be really inconvenient if it didn't," Ruby added.

"I'll go to the front desk to ask," Penny declared, turning towards the door.

"Kiss me before you go?" Ruby called.

Penny stopped and looked back at her. She grinned and backtracked, crawling onto the bed and leaning down to lightly kiss Ruby's lips. "There?"

"One more," Ruby mumbled, and Penny gave her another kiss. Ruby smiled and nodded. "Yeah."

Penny giggled, returning to her feet. "I'll hurry back." She then departed the room, leaving Ruby alone on the lone bed.

It was crazy how a freak storm threw such a wrench in their date night. Just as they were winding down from a busy day of running all over the city, now they had to stay in a hotel and share a single bed. However, Ruby was worried more about Ciel. Ruby knew she could have carried both her and Penny one more time, but Ciel was too thoughtful to allow it. Now Ciel's only outfit was soaked through. Ruby thought about calling Yang, Blake or Weiss to bring by a set of clothes, but she knew the three of them were probably out on a date, too. Ruby had no good ideas. If the hotel didn't have a laundry room, they had no options. Unless...

Ruby sat up. "I got it."

The front door opened, and Penny entered to deliver the bad news. "They don't have laundry. The building's too old for such facilities."

"I have an idea," Ruby told her, almost cutting her off.

Penny rose onto her toes. "Oh, what is it?"

Ruby pulled on the collar of her top. "I'll give her my clothes."

Penny blinked. "But...then you won't have anything to wear."

"But at least Ciel will."

Penny smiled. "Ruby, that's so sweet, but...Ciel won't allow that. She'd never want to you embarrass yourself in front of us."

"I won't be embarrassed," Ruby shook her head. "It's just you and her. Why wouldn't I be completely comfortable?"

Penny giggled and came over to sit next to Ruby. "Well, if you can convince her..."

"I will." Ruby nodded with confidence.

Penny looked to the side. "You know, I think it would make more sense if I lent my clothes to her."

"Penny, I'm totally cool with giving her mine."

"But..." Penny put a hand to her chest. "All this combat skirt is covering is my Tactile Sensory Matrix."

"So...your skin?"

"Exactly," Penny nodded.

Ruby laughed. "Penny, it's okay. I promise I won't be embarrassed."

"But neither will I," Penny protested.

Ruby sighed with a smile. Among the things Ruby had in common with Penny and Ciel was their collective stubbornness. If one of them insisted on one thing, and another insisted on another, they would bicker over who got to be the sweetest girl to one another. It was fun, if a little tiring. "Okay, we'll both offer to give her our combat skirts. We'll leave it up to her."

Penny smiled and nodded. "Agreed."

They heard the water in the shower stop running. Ciel would soon emerge.

"Hey, Ruby?" Penny muttered.

"Yeah?"

Penny took a moment to continue. "Uhm...I've never seen a person without clothes on. What should I expect?"

Ruby couldn't help but laugh. "That's the most blissfully innocent thing I've ever heard."

Penny shrugged, looking to the side. "I was just curious. I'm familiar with Human anatomy but I've just never seen it."

Ruby continued to laugh. "Penny, you're the sweetest. Don't worry, okay?"

"I'm not worried. I'm just curious," Penny explained.

"I'm curious, too." Ruby smiled, her face turning a faint pink. "But it's just us. Whatever state of dress we're in, it's alright."

"Ruby, could you explain something to me?" Penny asked.

Ruby looked at her, concerned. "Of course. What is it?"

Penny had a finger to her lip, in thought. "Isn't nudity typically arousing to other people?"

Ruby's face turned completely red as she flinched. "Penny, this has nothing to do with that."

"That's what's confusing me," Penny nodded. "Wouldn't being nude around us be arousing? I don't know what _arousing _really implies, but_—_"

"Penny." Ruby, flustered beyond compare, reached out and grabbed Penny's hand. "What you're talking about is completely different from this. You can be wearing nothing and it not be sexual. It can be intimate, romantic...but not..._arousing_. Do you understand?"

Penny stared at Ruby for a moment, then nodded. "I understand that. I was more curious about you and Ciel. I'm unable to be sexual in any fashion, so I didn't know how it would feel for you two."

Ruby sighed, looking down and chuckling. "I care so much about you and Ciel. I feel..._free _around the two of you. I'm romantically attracted to you two, like, big time, but I'm not sexually attracted to you two. There's...there's a difference."

"Ohhh," Penny nodded. "I see the distinction."

Ruby giggled. "That's why I'm fine with lending my clothes to Ciel. Nothing has to be different if I'm wearing less, and I know Ciel would feel better if she had the chance to have a dry outfit to wear."

"Okay," Penny nodded again. "Though, sometime soon, you should explain more about...everything you just said."

"You want me to give you The Talk?" Ruby asked.

"I suppose," Penny nodded.

Ruby blushed intensely once again. "Penny, I'm not the one you should ask about that."

The bathroom door opened slightly. "Girls?" Ciel called.

"Ciel?" Ruby and Penny said back.

"Is it okay if I come out?" She asked.

"Of course," Ruby told her.

Ciel emerged from the bathroom, a white towel wrapped around her body. Her dark blue hair was still wet, some of it stuck to her forehead and cheeks. She chuckled, though she seemed nervous. "I...take it there's nothing I can wear."

Ruby raised her hand. "Actually—"

Penny interrupted. "We both would like to offer our clothes to you."

Ciel stepped back a bit, eyes darting between the two of them. "B-both?"

"Well, you can choose which one of us," Penny explained.

Ruby leaned forward a bit. "Me and Penny talked about it, and we both decided that neither of us would feel embarrassed if we had to give up our clothes, so..." She shrugged. "What do you say?"

Ciel stared at them for a long moment. Ruby thought Ciel might agree for a second, but the hope was quickly snuffed out. "Girls, I can't take your clothes." Ciel shook her head.

"Why not?" Penny asked.

"I'd be fine with it, I promise," Ruby told her. "I know you'd feel embarrassed to not wear anything, so I thought...Ciel?"

Ciel had a hand to her face, her shoulders jumping every few seconds. Ruby and Penny exchanged concerned glances, then Penny went over to her. "Ciel? What...what's wrong?" Penny reached up to the hand Ciel had to her face, but when she pulled it away...

Ciel wasn't crying. She was laughing. "You two..." She took a moment to breathe, a wide smile on her face. "Oh my gosh. You two would really give up your own outfits just so I could wear something?"

Ruby chuckled, relieved Ciel wasn't upset. "Well, yeah."

"If it would make you feel better," Penny added.

Ciel looked up at Penny and shook her head. "You..." Her voice trailed off as she stood on her toes and kissed Penny's lips. Penny giggled as Ciel stepped past her toward Ruby. "You two..." She leaned down and kissed Ruby, then stood back up. "You two are making this out like it's...like it's the end of the world." She rubbed her eye. "Girls, I love you both. I don't care what I wear, I'm totally fine with just...this towel, and..." She stopped after noticing a change in both of her girlfriends. "Uhh...girls?"

"You..." Penny murmured.

"You love us?" Ruby asked, eyes wide.

Ciel stared at her for a second, then gasped. She said it. Just now, standing there, _in a towel_, she confessed it. And she didn't even realize it. After so much stress planning the perfect moment to say it, Ciel had just...declared it, in the natural flow of conversation. It took no effort at all, and yet, now that it was out there...

"Yes," Ciel nodded, smiling. "I love you girls. I...I've wanted to say that all day, and..." She sniffed. "Yeah. I love you."

Ruby put her hands over her mouth. "Ciel..."

Penny hurried over and hugged her partner. "I love you, too, Ciel!"

Ruby rubbed a tear from her eye and forced herself to her feet. Her legs wobbled, but she grabbed onto Penny and Ciel. "I love you, too!"

Ciel grinned as she leaned into both of them. "You two are the best girlfriends I could have ever dreamed of."

Penny and Ruby planted tandem kisses on Ciel's cheeks, garnering a giggle from her. Ruby then turned her head toward Penny and smiled. "I love you, Penny."

"I love you, too, Ruby," Penny grinned, and they kissed as well.

Then Ruby's legs gave out.

"Oh, frick..." Ruby murmured.

"Woah!" Both Penny and Ciel exclaimed as they fell with her. The three of them landed on the bed with a bounce, followed by laughter. "Ruby!" Penny giggled.

"I'm sorry! Peanut butter legs!" She defended herself between laughs.

Ciel pushed herself up off the bed, grinning. "I think you should just stay lying dow—" She stumbled backwards onto the floor as she tried to stand. "Ah!"

Penny gasped. "Ciel!"

Ciel landed on her back. Her towel unfurled, and in a panic, she scrambled to cover herself with it, curling into a ball and draping it over herself like a blanket. "Ehh!" She looked up to check the reactions of her girlfriends.

They stared at her for a moment, then Penny and Ruby dissolved into laughter. "We saw you!" Ruby teased her.

"Nuh uh, no you didn't," Ciel called back, but she knew they had, and she was terribly embarrassed. But seeing them both so happy was wonderful, so she quickly forgot about her embarrassment and laughed along with them.

Penny seemed especially amused, laughing so hard she started to hiccup. She felt back onto the bed next to Ruby and continued to lose it. "Ciel, you..." She gasped, then hiccuped, then continued to laugh.

Ciel curled into a tighter ball under her towel and pouted, trying to act funny so they would both keep laughing.

Ruby leaned forward, extending a hand to Ciel. "Come here, I'm sorry I made you fall over, Sunshine."

"Uh uh," Ciel shook her head, smiling. "I'm staying down here, under my blanket."

"Pff," Ruby scoffed, then turned toward Penny, who was still laughing. "Penny!"

"Hehehe, I saw your booty!" Penny declared happily.

"Penny!" Ruby laughed.

"Ehhhh!" Ciel whined.

"Pick her up and put her on this bed," Ruby told Penny, pointing at Ciel.

"Nooo!" Ciel protested, grinning.

Penny, still laughing, sat up and nodded in agreement. "Come here, Ciel!"

"No!" Ciel covered her head with the towel.

Penny knelt and began to gather Ciel up into her arms. "Come on!"

"Noooooo," Ciel whined from beneath her towel, giggling as she felt Penny wrapping her arms around her. "That tickles, stop!"

Penny successfully wrapped Ciel up in her towel and lifted her into her arms bridal style. "There!" Penny grinned.

Ciel peeked out from her towel, still with the lower half of her face hidden, intentionally trying to be cute.

Penny giggled. "You're so adorable."

"Sunshine burrito!" Ruby declared.

"Sunshine burrito!" Penny seconded.

"Ehhh!" Ciel whined, hiding under her towel again.

Penny turned and placed Ciel in Ruby's lap. "Could you hold this, please Miss Rose?" Penny asked.

"I would love to," Ruby smiled, cradling Ciel in her arms. She reached up and tugged the towel down just enough to reveal Ciel's eyes, which peered up at her, blinking twice. "Hey cutie," Ruby chirped.

"Hi," Ciel said back.

"I love your outfit," Ruby teased.

"I don't like it." Ciel shook her head.

"Because it's too..." Penny paused. "_Revealing?"_

Ruby laughed and Ciel hid under her towel again. "Quit teasing meeee."

"Are we teasing you too much?" Ruby asked, concerned.

Ciel immediately sat up and kissed Ruby's cheek, then settling back into her cradled position. "No, I honestly like it."

"Well good, 'cause you're fun to tease." Ruby smiled.

"You're so easily flustered," Penny added, sitting down on the bed next to Ruby, playing with Ciel's damp hair.

"I am not." Ciel shook her head.

"You get flustered when we call you pretty," Ruby told her.

"I do not," Ciel denied.

"You're so pretty, Ciel!" Penny declared.

"So, so beautiful!" Ruby added.

Ciel sputtered her words and blushed. "H-how dare you."

Ruby and Penny both laughed and hugged Ciel. "We love you, Sunshine."

Ciel closed her eyes and sighed, smiling. "I love you both, too."

They had never spent a night in the same bed, but thankfully the bed allowed enough room for the three of them to sleep comfortably. It was getting late, so they all began to make bedtime preparations, with Penny going down to the lobby to get a tiny tube of toothpaste and little toothbrushes for Ciel and Ruby.

Of course, they couldn't get in bed before discussing nightwear.

"I didn't bring PJs," Ruby said. "And I am not sleeping in his thing." She gestured to her combat skirt.

"I am in a towel," Ciel protested. "I think sleeping in your underwear would be reasonable."

"Yeah, that's fair," Ruby agreed. "Are you going to sleep with the towel still around you?"

"Either that or I could trust you two not to feel me up while I sleep," Ciel joked, but her own attempt at teasing made herself blush. Just the _thought of that..._

Ruby and Penny were just as embarrassed at such an accusation. "Of course we wouldn't do that!" Ruby said.

Ciel, laughing nervously. "I know, I was kidding!"

"Who sleeps in the middle?" Penny asked, glancing at the bed.

"Me," Ciel declared right away, rolling onto the bed and pulling the covers over herself.

Ruby crossed her arms. "I wanted to sleep in the middle..."

"But I need to be in the middle so you two can keep me warm," Ciel whined.

Ruby grinned. "I can do that."

"I'm warm," Penny added.

"Yeah, you are." Ciel nodded.

Ruby proceeded to pull her cloak and combat skirt off. "I don't think I've ever slept without PJs on."

"Hey, me neither," Ciel chuckled.

"Your underwear is cute, Ruby!" Penny complimented.

Ruby's undies were white and covered with red cherries. She couldn't help but blush at the sweet yet embarrassing compliment. "Thanks, Penny." She then climbed into bed on Ciel's left.

Penny was about to climb in bed with them, but then she paused to think.

"What is it, Penny?" Ciel asked.

"I feel like this would be awkward," Penny admitted.

"How?" Ruby asked. "What's awkward about sharing a bed?"

"I mean...me wearing my clothes when you two aren't," Penny said.

Ciel and Ruby were silent for a moment, both confused. "Wait...you weren't going to take off your combat skirt?" Ruby asked.

"I usually don't," Penny said.

"You sleep fully clothed?" Ciel asked, chuckling.

"Well, I just lie down and go into sleep mode," Penny shrugged. "Really, I don't require any special garments for comfort to sleep. I just...shift into sleep mode."

"I wish falling asleep were that easy," Ruby murmured.

"Well, if you're comfortable with that..." Ciel offered.

"But you two aren't wearing this much," Penny said. "It just doesn't seem fair."

"Aww, but you don't have to—"

"I insist," Penny nodded, then swiftly yanked her combat skirt over her head and revealed more of her body than either Ruby or Ciel had ever seen. She wore a gray crop top and trunks, though they were obviously a formality as Penny had no female anatomy of any sort. (How weird would it be if she did?) Her elbow and knee joints were visible hinge points, as were her torso and shoulders. She definitely _looked_ like a robot now, whereas she looked completely Human when clothed.

But despite her robotic nature, Ruby and Ciel were amazed. "Wow. You're beautiful, Penny," Ciel said.

"Amazing," Ruby agreed.

Penny smiled, rubbing the back of her neck. "You still think so, even though you can tell..." She moved her arm, flexing her elbow joint. "I'm obviously not a real girl?"

"You are a real girl!" Ruby immediately protested.

"You're real and beautiful!" Ciel added. "You're as real a girl as me or Ruby."

Ruby smiled and kissed Ciel's cheek. "Aww, Sunshine..."

"We love you, Penny." Ciel smiled.

Penny grinned, folding her hands in front of her chest. "I love you both, too. Thank you so much for accepting me."

"You accepted me, too," Ciel smiled.

"And me," Ruby added. "You both accepted me. Of course we accept you."

Penny sighed and nodded. "Thank you so much, girls." She then crawled into bed to Ciel's right and switched off the lamp.

The room was quiet and almost perfectly dark if not for the slight bit of moonlight that seeped between the curtains. Ruby and Penny rolled onto their sides and both extended an arm across Ciel to hold her. Ciel giggled, leaning her head against Ruby's while hooking her arm under Penny's. Penny's skin felt real, soft and cool to the touch, despite her artificial nature. Ciel could not decide why, but Penny being a robot, yet being so unabashedly Human in her kindness and empathy, was so overwhelmingly beautiful, she felt like crying. She loved Penny so much. She felt so lucky to be held by her in this moment.

And then there was Ruby, the poor girl who had run her legs ragged just so they could have a fun date night. Ciel knew she would never be able to thank Ruby enough for tonight. In fact, even after getting soaked in the rain and almost freezing her butt off, Ruby was so concerned and helpful that the night became even better. Ciel never planned for the night to end like this, but that night she found out that sometimes, breaking plans made things turn out even better, just like how her plan to tell them "I love you" never turned out how she dreamt it would, but nevertheless, the night turned out perfect.

As minute after minute passed and Ciel began to feel more and more tired, she closed her eyes and began to drift to sleep.

Ciel was always in a hurry to meet deadlines and to be on time, but Ruby and Penny tended to ruin those plans in the most wonderful ways possible. They showed her that reaching the destination was not always as important as the journey, especially if her two amazing, kind, beautiful girlfriends are along for the ride. They somehow found a way to take Ciel's eyes away from her watch, and instead enjoy moments that time could never measure.

Ciel knew one thing for certain—Penny and Ruby were worth slowing down for.


End file.
